Brendan unlaced her corset and tossed the garment on the chair. He slipped his hands around her to cup her breasts and kissed her shoulder.
Laura turned and stood before him in her shift, aware of how it revealed more than it hid. She reached down to gather it up and pull it over her head.
“Leave it on,” he said, his voice tight.
Brendan took her hand and led her across the room. Beside the bed, his mouth sought hers again, a breathlessly demanding kiss, while his hands smoothed over the back of her thighs and squeezed her bottom. His stiff arousal rubbed against her most sensitive part through the thin cloth, his masculine smell making her whimper against his lips.
As they grew breathless, he scooped her up and laid her down on the bed.
Laura saw the raw need in his eyes before he turned away to disrobe. Her stomach throbbed with yearning. She put her hand between her legs, finding warmth and moisture. She had longed for this. To be desired by the man she loved.
She watched the banyan slip from Brendan’s shoulders and her breath caught.
He stood naked before her, his member proud, erect, his body as beautiful as any statue. Joining her on the bed, he lay beside her. He tweaked her nipples through the chemise, then bent and caressed the stiff peaks with his tongue, making Laura moan with pleasure.
“Shall we take this off?”
With her assisting, he pulled the chemise over her head and tossed it on to the floor, then lay atop her. He explored her thoroughly with hands and lips, planting kisses on her stomach and down to the tuft of hair at the juncture of her thighs. With the lightest of caresses, he pressed his mouth against her there.
Laura flushed with embarrassment. “Brendan?”
“Hush, sweetheart.”
She arched herself against him, moving restlessly, not knowing what she craved, except more. Laura tumbled into a wave of sensation, which sent her spinning. Had she cried out? Laura melted, mindless.
Brendan settled between her thighs and nudged them apart.
She loved the heavy weight of him, his large body and clean, male smell, as he lowered his head to take a nipple in his mouth while tweaking the other one. Laura moaned at the exquisite sensation, clutching his head as he gave his attention to the other breast. She stroked her hands over his back everywhere she could reach, feeling the slide of powerful muscles and strong bones beneath smooth skin.
He rose to kiss her, plundering her mouth. Their panting breaths filled the room. His gaze, potent with intent, locked with hers. “You are so beautiful, Laura.”
Laura stilled as the blunt force of his erection nudged her tender flesh. She gasped at the jolt of pleasure, pain, and heat as he pushed inside. Filling her. She murmured incoherently at the extraordinary sensations. Her fingers dug into his shoulders and as the pain eased, she lifted her hips to greet each thrust.
With a groan, he held her by her hips and pushed deeper, faster. Then, with a loud groan, he grew still.
Brendan rolled to the side and lay stroking a hand over her breasts and stomach. “Did I hurt you?”
“A little.”
He smiled. “But not for all of it?”
“No.” She sighed. “It was lovely.”
“Then shall we do it again?”
She giggled.
He kissed her, then pulled the bedcover over them. “It gets better, darling.”
“Does it?” Laura said sleepily. She loved lying snug against him, and closed her eyes.
“Sleep, my love. It’s been a long day.”
“Mm. A perfectly wonderful day,” she murmured.
*
Brendan gazed athis bride. Even in sleep, she was adorable. He wanted to kiss her awake, but he resisted the impulse. They had awakened an hour later and shared a cold supper. And as the sun rose to send rays of golden light through the break in the curtains, Brendan kissed her. More familiar with each other’s bodies, they roused each other to passion, and he lost himself in her fragrant warmth.
